Posts tagged: C. diff treament

When we think of antibiotic misuse, we often think of how it contributes to big name superbugs such as C. diff and MRSA. But what often goes overlooked is how antibiotic misuse affects the many microbes that are beneficial to our health. While the Human Microbiome Project is a step in the right direction towards learning more about combating horrible diseases like C. diff, it is also a huge advancement in terms of understanding which microbes truly benefit us—and which ones we may have been too quick to label as hazardous to our health.

Take for example the germ H. pylori. During the 1980s, it was discovered that H. pylori was a causative agent for peptic ulcers. While this major discovery resulted in the treatment of such individuals by aiming to eradicate H. pylori microbes from the stomach, researchers are now discovering possible adverse implications of this.

Before I begin discussing how the Human Microbiome Project has already impacted our knowledge of H. pylori, I want to make it clear that I am not by any means suggesting that this particular microbe is not hazardous to our health. In other words, I’m not suggesting you go and ingest H. pylori as Barry Marshall did in order to validate his theory about H. pylori and peptic ulcers. Read more »